The Importance of Mentors
I've been blessed to know a lot of people over the years who were willing to share their wisdom and answer my questions and generally show me a path forward for my life and career. I've reached an age in life (52) and stage in life (advanced professional?) where it's increasingly difficult to find people with more experience who can answer my questions or anticipate what challenges or opportunities I need to consider.
About five years ago, I met a fellow arbitrator named Elizabeth ("Betsy") Wesman, who was appointed to a committee that I chair. The committee had some ambitious plans and wasn't fully supported by everyone in our organization, so there were some political issues and planning challenges that we faced. Betsy had more years of experience but no less enthusiasm for our committee than I did. Every month we met and Betsy had insights and ideas and a willingness to do the work to implement anything we asked of her. As time passed, she became my friend, and a real mentor to me. She was a mentor to probably dozens of other people too.
Betsy's passing last month came as a shock to many of us, especially since we had seen her at a national conference where she was her usual bright, funny, wise, effusive self. Here is her obituary.
I mention all this not just to honor Betsy, who deserves more accolades than I've provided here, but to say that mentors at any age of our lives deeply enrich us. The act of mentoring enriches us as well. We can pay forward the support we've gotten, we can get feedback on changes in culture and our own fields, we can make new friends. Literally anyone at any stage of their career can mentor someone else. College kids can mentor high school students. High school students can mentor middle school kids. Fifth graders can help kindergartners learn to read.
Labor relations and labor arbitration in particular are built on the relationships that teach problem-solving, provide a safe place for venting and reflection, and bring forth new norms about workplace conduct. I currently mentor peers who are moving from advocacy roles to arbitrator roles. I wouldn't pretend for a second to know more about labor relations than they do, but I can help them shape their new persona to the neutral role, and I enjoy doing so.
On August 28, 2026, in Oakland, California, the National Academy of Arbitrator's Northern California Region is hosting the Meet the Arbitrator conference, where advocates can meet many of these emerging arbitrators. If you live in Northern California, I hope you will consider attending. You can find more information here.
Now, I'm off to find a new mentor. 😭
